Evetts, Leonard
Leonard Charles Evetts (1909-97) was born and raised in Newport, Monmouthshire and worked initially with his father, there being no money to send him to college. However, through study, hard work and a love of drawing he would go on to win two scholarships to study at the Royal College of Art, which included the study of stained glass under Martin Travers. After the RCA he was invited to join the staff of Edinburgh College of Art in 1933, to teach lettering and related subjects, along with drawing. Moving south in 1937 he joined King’s College, Newcastle as a lecturer in design. King’s College became Newcastle University, and Evetts would become head of the School of Design, cementing an association that lasted until his retirement in 1974.
At Newcastle commissions began to arrive, often by personal recommendation, and in a working life of over 60 years he was to become an exceptionally prolific stained glass artist. He was also a calligrapher, painter, author and teacher, historian and conservationist, but above all a designer.
Source: Leonard Evetts, master designer, (Privately printed, Leonard Evetts Estate, 2001)
